Peace & JusticeMayflower is a Just Peace / Open & Affirming Congregation where all are welcome
for worship, nurture, and growth. Read more about what that means below or see how you can get involved in the community. |
Our HistoryWe began gathering in 1960 and, since then, have continued to look for and tried to follow the example and spirit of the Christ who cares for and about all within the human family.
We don’t always agree with each other, but we do look for ways to appreciate and respect our variety of perspectives and our diversity of gifts with thanks to God that there is always more light to break forth from the word. |
Still SpeakingThe comma constantly reminds us of God’s boundless love and reminds us that God is still speaking and that God speaks in multiple ways.
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Mayflower Open & Affirming Declaration
The following statement was voted on by the congregation on April 25, 1999, and still guides us today. We, the members of Mayflower Congregational United Church of Christ, believe that, although we are many members, we are one body in God; each of us is unique in our spirit, gifts, and needs for nurturing. We strive to be a community where each of us can share our spirit and gifts, and both give and receive nurturing. We confess that as a diverse people, we may differ in our vision for the church, the community, and the world. We pray in our diversity, that we will continue to respect differing views as we join in our purpose of following Jesus the Christ in faith and love. We affirm our faith in Jesus Christ and in the church He has called into being, which by His grace and mercy welcomes unconditionally all who confess Him. We celebrate the family in its diverse forms and affirm loving and committed relationships. We believe relationships between individuals, groups, and nationals must be based on love, justice, commitment, and mutual respect, and we seek such relationships in our church, homes, and communities. We invite and encourage all who join us to share fully in every aspect of our church life, ministry, and leadership. We do not affirm any behavior that uses people as objects and denies their dignity. We denounce acts of discrimination, hatred, and violence against any person. We, the members of Mayflower Congregational United Church of Christ, welcome into this community of faith people of every age, education level, gender, race, sexual orientation, ethnic background, marital status, socioeconomic status, and/or physical and mental ability. Therefore, we the members of Mayflower Congregational United Church of Christ, declare ourselves to be an Open and Affirming Congregation. |
Our “Just Peace” Statement
A Covenant for Justice & Peace WE COVENANT To become a community of hope, believing a just peace is possible, working toward this end, and communicating to the larger world the excitement and possibility of a just peace; To become a community of worship and celebration, focusing our mission in justice, peacemaking and the good news of peace, which is Jesus Christ; To become a community of spiritual nurture and support, loving one another and giving one another strength in the struggle for a just peace; To become an honest and open community, a zone of Christian freedom, liberty, and mutual respect where differences may be expressed, explored, and worked through in understanding and growth; To become a community in kinship with the poor, seeking to support them in places of oppression, poverty, violence and supporting the oppressed in the struggle to resist and change these evils, and to attain full human dignity; To become a community of repentance, confessing our own guilt and involvement in injustice and violence, ready to acknowledge our entanglement in sin and evil, seeking to turn toward new life in Christ. SHALOM |
Creation Justice Covenant
Adopted November 1, 2020
The earth is God’s… everything in it and all who live on it.
As members of Mayflower Congregational United Church of Christ, we know that we have a common
connection to God, to each other, and to our blessed earth and universe.
We accept our responsibility as persons of faith to care for what God has made.
We acknowledge that to neglect or damage God’s creation is a failing of our connection to God; that
our misuse of creation inevitably harms the earth and causes human suffering that falls hardest onto
the poor, the exploited, and the disregarded. We understand that the climate crisis brings on hardship
around the world, and that it is our responsibility as people of faith to rise to this challenge.
We remember the everlasting covenant between God and all life on the earth, and we hear the urgent
calling to care for God’s creation. We pledge ourselves to pursue justice for our fellow humans and the
rest of the living world whose very existence is vulnerable to pollution, destruction, and other injuries.
We will reflect our care for creation and our love of justice through our worship, the life and practice of
our church, and the use of our building and land.
We commit to take action on behalf of God’s creation, and to carry our work beyond the walls of our
church, into our community and our world.
Adopted November 1, 2020
The earth is God’s… everything in it and all who live on it.
As members of Mayflower Congregational United Church of Christ, we know that we have a common
connection to God, to each other, and to our blessed earth and universe.
We accept our responsibility as persons of faith to care for what God has made.
We acknowledge that to neglect or damage God’s creation is a failing of our connection to God; that
our misuse of creation inevitably harms the earth and causes human suffering that falls hardest onto
the poor, the exploited, and the disregarded. We understand that the climate crisis brings on hardship
around the world, and that it is our responsibility as people of faith to rise to this challenge.
We remember the everlasting covenant between God and all life on the earth, and we hear the urgent
calling to care for God’s creation. We pledge ourselves to pursue justice for our fellow humans and the
rest of the living world whose very existence is vulnerable to pollution, destruction, and other injuries.
We will reflect our care for creation and our love of justice through our worship, the life and practice of
our church, and the use of our building and land.
We commit to take action on behalf of God’s creation, and to carry our work beyond the walls of our
church, into our community and our world.
Still speaking, |
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Mayflower is part of the United Church of Christ.
Still speaking, It's the shorter form of "God is still speaking," Notice the Comma at the end?
The comma constantly reminds us of God’s boundless love and reminds us that God is still speaking and that God speaks in multiple ways. The comma carries the hope of God’s peace with justice; of religion relevant to our unique experiences; of the new light and truth still to break from God’s word. The comma reminds us that on our continuing faith journeys, God is still speaking and to extend an extravagant welcome to all--because no matter who you are, or where you are on life's journey, you're welcome here.
Today, under one collective identity, we can enthusiastically lift up that the UCC is a welcoming, justice-minded Christian community. At a time when religion is too often portrayed as narrow-minded and exclusive, many are raising their VOICES for an alternate vision:
– Where God is all-loving and inclusive
– Where the Church of Jesus Christ welcomes and accepts everyone as they are
– Where your mind is nourished as much as your soul
– Where Jesus the healer meets Jesus the revolutionary
– Where together we grow a just and peaceful world
Still speaking, It's the shorter form of "God is still speaking," Notice the Comma at the end?
The comma constantly reminds us of God’s boundless love and reminds us that God is still speaking and that God speaks in multiple ways. The comma carries the hope of God’s peace with justice; of religion relevant to our unique experiences; of the new light and truth still to break from God’s word. The comma reminds us that on our continuing faith journeys, God is still speaking and to extend an extravagant welcome to all--because no matter who you are, or where you are on life's journey, you're welcome here.
Today, under one collective identity, we can enthusiastically lift up that the UCC is a welcoming, justice-minded Christian community. At a time when religion is too often portrayed as narrow-minded and exclusive, many are raising their VOICES for an alternate vision:
– Where God is all-loving and inclusive
– Where the Church of Jesus Christ welcomes and accepts everyone as they are
– Where your mind is nourished as much as your soul
– Where Jesus the healer meets Jesus the revolutionary
– Where together we grow a just and peaceful world